VFW OBJECTIVES:
 TO ENSURE THE NATIONAL
SECURITY through maximum military
strength
 TO ASSIST THE WIDOWS AND
ORPHANS and the dependents of
disabled and needy veterans.
 TO SPEED THE REHABILITATION of
the nation’s disabled and needy veterans.
 TO PROMOTE AMERICANISM through
education in patriotism and constructive
service to the communities in which we
live.
SSG JONATHAN
KILIAN DOZIER
POST 2894
Chesapeake, Virginia 23322
NEWSLETTER – Vol. III, Issue 3, June/July 2014
COMMANDER’S CORNER
POST 2894
nd
Meetings
2 Wednesday of month – 7:00 pm
Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) Lodge,
110 Kempsville Rd, Chesapeake, VA
Post Address:
VFW Post 2894
PO Box 15842
Chesapeake, VA 23328
Phone: 757-620-0087
Email: [email protected]
Web Site: www.vfw2894.org
Visit us on FaceBook
OFFICERS
Commander……..
Chris Mulholland
Sr. Vice Commander……..
John Guill
Jr. Vice Commander.....
Gary Shaffer
Adjutant…………………. Tom Benson
Quartermaster………. Craig Devonshire
Chaplain………………….
Mike Morris
Surgeon………………….
Ray Brogan
Staff Judge Advocate…… Matt Hamel
Service Officer…………… Gary Dunbar
NATIONAL
www.vfw.org
STATE
www.vfwva.org
VFW VA DISTRICT 2
www.vfwwebcom.org/va/dist2
City of Chesapeake
www.visitchesapeake.com/things-todo/events
Greetings Comrades! Please remember
to renew your annual dues if you haven’t
already. And consider becoming a Life
Member so that you no longer have to
worry about annual dues.
This has been a busy spring! Between
award ceremonies, the officer installation
ceremony, handing out of Buddy Poppies
on Armed Forces Day, and our hosting of
the Third Annual Bataan Death March
Memorial Walk on Memorial Day
weekend, we were B-U-S-Y!!! Thanks to
everyone who helped
out! And thanks also to
all those friends and
family who contributed
as well! In view of that,
one of our goals in the
next few months is to
establish
a
Ladies’
Auxiliary so that the Post
will have additional
helping hands to assist us
with all of our events.
I would be remiss if I
didn’t specifically thank
Comrade Matt Schweers
and his wife, Grace. Between the two of
them, they took a small family idea to
honor the heroes of Bataan and evolved it
into the large community event that it is
today. Without their tireless dedication
and work this would not be the annual
event it is today. Thanks to you both!
I also want to thank Comrade Gary
Dunbar who has single-handedly helped
improve the lives of the oldest member of
our Post, WWII Vet and Silver Star
winner Harry Oakley, and his wife. Gary
has been a champion for them, personally
driving them to regular VA hospital
appointments and leading the charge on
having modifications made to their house
to make it more accessible. From wider
doors, a chair lift and modifications to
their bathroom, Gary has been a one-man
gangbuster and his title as “Service
Officer” has been well deserved!
This summer marks the anniversary of
two major events in US military history,
the 70th anniversary of the D-Day landing
at Normandy, and the 15th anniversary of
the entry of US forces into Kosovo.
Please consider attending a
D-Day memorial service
somewhere – there are
fewer and fewer veterans
from that era left alive.
There will be services at
Joint Expeditionary Base
Little Creek, in Bedford,
Virginia (home of the
National D-Day Memorial)
and at the WWII memorial
in Washington DC.
Lastly, another Medal of
Honor
was
recently
presented to Sgt Kyle
White in a ceremony at the White House
on May 13th. What struck me most was
his humility and his comment that – after
he thought he was mortally wounded – “If
I'm not going to make it, then I'm at least
going to try to help somebody until it
happens." That could be the motto for all
of us as we take care of both our older and
younger veterans.
Thanks to all of you and your service!
Semper Fidelis,
Chris Mulholland, Commander
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[email protected]
SSG Dozier VFW Post 2894 Newsletter – Vol. III, Issue 3, June/July 2014
POST AWARDS CEREMONY
Will was accompanied at the ceremony by his mother, Laurie,
and grandparents, Captain Bill and Monica Wheaton (USN, ret).
His father, Jim, a former school board member, was unable to attend
since he was out of town at an American Disabilities Act
conference.
Too often we read articles about heroic deeds performed by an
officer of the law, a firefighter, or an EMT and there is no
recognition for what they have done. Every day these men and
women in uniform put their lives on the line for us and our
community. Every year the VFW selects emergency services
persons, law enforcement officers and firefighters for National
VFW Awards. The candidates must have: recognition by their
colleagues or those they serve; consistent excellence in the
performance of their duties; and consistent dedication to their
official responsibilities over a period of years and continuous
At the April 9 meeting of Post 2894 we welcomed numerous
VIPs and guests who came to share in recognizing and honoring
three of the Posts award winners, the Scout of the Year and the coPolice Officers of the Year. These VIPs included Chesapeake’s
Mayor Alan Krasnoff, Chief of Police Kelvin Wright, and City
Council Member Suzy Kelly, who all made opening remarks before
the awards were handed out.
Annually, the VFW recognizes a Boy Scout Eagle Scout, Girl
Scout Gold Award recipient, Venture Silver Award recipient and
Sea Scout Quartermaster who have risen above their peers in
exemplifying the exceptional qualities of that rank. The National
winners are awarded scholarships of up to $5000.
Post 2894’s winner will be an
outstanding leader of the future and we
wish that all of the members could have
read
his
amazing
resumé.
William
Wheaton is
an
Eagle
Scout
with
BSA Troop
824 and a
senior
at
Norfolk Academy who has been on the
High Honor Roll all four years in high
school, has a perfect 4.0 GPA (NA does
not weigh grades), and is an AP Scholar,
co-captain of his school’s crew team, 2From left to right: Chief Wright, Suzy Kelly, Officer Weir, Officer Beaver, Will
year member of the All-State choir,
Wheaton, Commander Mulholland, and Mayor Krasnoff
concertmaster of the NA orchestra, and
growth in responsibilities and skills within their profession.
President of the International Relations Club. In scouting, Will is a
This year, for the first time ever, Post 2894 honored two
member of the Order of the Arrow, a Vigil Honor award winner, is
Chesapeake Police Department (CPD) officers as the co-Police
working on a Gold Award in Venturing, and has held numerous
Officers of the Year, Stephen Weir and Selena Beaver
leadership positions in Boy Scouts, OA, and Venturing Crew. He
Quoting from their award nomination, “It has been said that
has attended multiple High Adventure Camps, including Philmont,
‘perseverance is the hard work you do after you get tired of doing
and National and World Scout Jamborees. Will has already been
the hard work you already did,’ and the perseverance and dedication
accepted at the University of Virginia where he wants to major in
to service by each of these officers resulted in the successful
business but is waiting on responses from several other elite
apprehension of a burglary suspect, the safe recovery of a stolen
colleges including Princeton and Dartmouth.
firearm, and a thorough investigation that lasted for several days.
Despite his already enormously impressive accomplishments,
For their collective efforts in providing outstanding service to the
the main reason that he was selected as our Scout of the Year was
citizens of Chesapeake..” they were selected by their peers as CPD’s
because of his Eagle Scout project. In his own words, “After
Officers of the Year. Additionally, both were also honored with the
noticing that there was no place in Chesapeake where the names of
department’s Outstanding Teamwork and Exceptional Performance
those servicemen from Chesapeake who have died in the nation’s
Awards and the Chief’s Award of Recognition.
service had been gathered, I set out to remedy this…After collecting
Officer Stephen Weir is originally from Philadelphia and has
[the] data, I gathered information and stories about many of the men
been a member of the CPD for 4 years.
through interviews and more research, and wrote a book (‘The Gold
He always wanted to be a police officer
Star Honor Roll’) that compiled the stories of these men…and
but his career path took him away from
filmed a documentary based on the book, with narrators telling the
that goal before his brother, a detective
stories at locations in the area significant to each soldier. I then
with CPD, notified him of an
created many copies of the book and movie and distributed them to
opportunity within the department.
all of the public libraries and public schools in Chesapeake.”
While attending the police academy, he
For his notable interest in preserving and publicizing those who
traveled back and forth between
perished in service to our nation, Will was recognized with a
Virginia and Pennsylvania on the
certificate and a monetary reward which will go to helping him
weekends. Stephen and his wife have
during his first year at college. We are confident that Will’s
been married for 11 years and have two
package will be favorably received at the national level and hope
beautiful girls, 6 and 8 years old.
that he will receive substantial acknowledgment and appreciation.
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SSG Dozier VFW Post 2894 Newsletter – Vol. III, Issue 3, June/July 2014
Until the next newsletter, here are some quick snapshots
from another successful completion of this iconic event.
Officer Selena Beaver hails from Norfolk – not the one in
Virginia but the small town in upstate New York! She has been
with the force for about 4-1/2 years, and was accepted to the police
academy after 6 successful years in the US Army where she was a
Counter Intelligence Agent and
Interrogator with the 525th Military
Intelligence (MI) Brigade. She was on
active airborne status and conducted
over 100 jumps, eventually earning the
rank of Sergeant (E5) with numerous
awards and commendation medals after
deployments to Bosnia-Herzegovina,
Afghanistan and Iraq. She has an
associate’s degree in social science and
intends to continue her education and
earn a baccalaureate. Selena is married to a Virginia Beach police
officer and has a handsome, 6 year old son. At the awards
ceremony, along with her certificate she was handed a VFW
membership application which she promised to fill out and return!
Additionally, she has promised to distribute VFW information
within the police department and recruit other veterans to Post 2894.
We look forward to her – and other members of the ‘thin blue line’
– joining our ranks!
The three award recipients were then congratulated by all the
attendees. We are holding our meetings at the Fraternal Order of
Police (FOP) Lodge 9 at the intersection of Kempsville Road and
Battlefield Boulevard. If you haven’t joined us to see this great
facility, please make the time to join us at our next meeting on 14
May where we will be installing our officers for the 2014-’15
fraternal year.
GOOD WORK AND JOBS WELL DONE!!!
Patriot Guards motorcycle escort for
SGM Mimms
Participants walking for 1LT Vinett
of Chesapeake currently in
Afghanistan
SGM Mimms regaling a group of young
Marine volunteers
Out Post hot dog stand in action!
ELECTION RESULTS FOR 2014-‘15
Comrade Gary Dunbar manning the
Post recruiting booth.
The following slate of officers was elected at the April
Post meeting and installed at the May meeting:
 Commander – Chris Mulholland
 Senior Vice Commander – John Guill
 Junior Vice Commander – Gary Shaffer
 Quartermaster – Craig Devonshire
 Adjutant – Tom Benson
 Surgeon – Ray Brogan
 Chaplain – Mike Morris
 Judge Advocate – Matt Hamel
 Service Officer – Gary Dunbar
 1st Year Trustee – Matt Schweers
 2nd Year Trustee – Carl Dozier
 3rd Year Trustee – Geoff Briggs
Memorial services and speeches
3RD ANNUAL BATAAN DEATH
MARCH MEMORIAL WALK
A group of participants posing after
their 16.5 mile walk
Chesapeake Fire Department
provided a wonderful backdrop
with the American flag.
One of the highlights was the “coming out” of our Post’s
hot dog stand! It was a welcome sight for the hungry
finishers of the long walk.
Due to the printing deadline for this newsletter, the
complete results from the 3rd Annual Bataan Death March
Memorial Walk are not in yet but will be included in the next
newsletter. SGM Mimms, a survivor of the death march, was
on-hand again this year to regal the participants with stories
from this horrific episode in US military history. We had
participants from as far away as Seattle, Washington as well
as Ft. Bragg, NC and Langley Air Force Base here in
Hampton.
70th ANNIVERSARY OF D-DAY
This June marks the 70th anniversary of one of the most historic
events in US military history...the landing at Normandy, forever
remembered as “D-DAY”. Many movies have portrayed both the
horror and courage of that day, from “The Longest Day” to “Saving
Private Ryan”. By now, the living veterans of that iconic day are in
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SSG Dozier VFW Post 2894 Newsletter – Vol. III, Issue 3, June/July 2014
their 90s. There won’t be many of them left for the 80th
anniversary. On 6 June, at 9 am, there will be a ceremony at Joint
Expeditionary Base Little Creek to honor the men and the moment.
This service is open to anyone.
Please RSVP to
[email protected].
It had been a grim fight. Six weeks of battle had left the Germans
disheartened and susceptible to any farther blow the Allies might
deliver. "It was casualty reports, casualty reports, casualty reports
wherever you went," Rommel told his son Manfred from his
sickbed. "I have never fought with such losses...And the worst of it
is that it was all without sense or purpose." Indeed, Rommel
continued, on some days the equivalent of a regiment of his men
had fallen in Normandy-more than in a whole summer of fighting in
Africa during 1942.
The days had been filled with mud, heartache, and pain for the
Allies as well. From the very beginning, little had seemed to go
right. The airborne assault on the night before the landing had sown
confusion among the enemy and had provided an important
diversion, but too many of the men had landed too far from their
targets. As a result, the effort had only a marginal effect on the
developing battle. Over the days that followed, rather than
withdrawing beyond the Seine as Allied planners had expected, the
Germans had hung on tenaciously, taking brutal losses but inflicting
them upon the Allies as well. Meanwhile, Montgomery's careful
plan for the attack had begun to unravel on D-Day itself. His forces
failed to take Caen, the key to further operations in the open country
to the south. Attacking time and again as the campaign developed,
they had nonetheless held the cream of the German force in place,
absorbing pressure that would almost inevitably have fallen upon
Bradley's forces in the bocage.
As for the Americans, the landing on OMAHA Beach had been a
near-disaster averted only by the courage of unsung sailors and
soldiers. When air attacks and naval gunfire had failed to silence
German guns and the momentum of the assault had begun to lag,
those heroes had pushed their frail landing craft to shore despite the
traps and obstacles blocking their way. Rallying to the directions of
their
commanders,
A great invasion force stood off the Normandy coast of France as
dawn broke on 6 June 1944: 9 battleships, 23 cruisers, 104
destroyers, and 71 large landing craft of various descriptions as well
as troop transports, mine sweepers, and merchantmen-in all, nearly
5,000 ships of every type, the largest armada ever assembled. The
naval bombardment that began at 0550 that morning detonated large
minefields along the shoreline and destroyed a number of the
enemy's defensive positions. To one correspondent, reporting from
the deck of the cruiser HMS Hillary, it sounded like "the rhythmic
beating of a gigantic drum" all along the coast. In the hours
following the bombardment, more than 100,000 fighting men swept
ashore to begin one of the epic assaults of history, a "mighty
endeavor," as President Franklin D. Roosevelt described it to the
American people, "to preserve . our civilization and to set free a
suffering humanity."
Allied losses were high: 2,500 men at OMAHA Beach alone,
another 2,500 among the American airborne divisions, almost 1,100
for the Canadians, and some 3,000 for the British – more than 9,000
men in all, one-third of whom were killed in action. Even so, the
number was less than Allied planners had expected. Concerned that
Hitler would respond to the invasion with extreme violence and
might even resort to poison gas, Eisenhower's chief surgeon, Maj.
Gen. Albert W. Kenner, and the Chief Surgeon of the U.S. Army's
European Theater of Operations, Maj. Gen. Paul R. Hawley, had
prepared their staffs to process at least 12,000 killed and wounded in
the First U.S. Army alone.
By the evening of 6 June 1944, Allied power had prevailed all
across the Normandy beachhead. The British had failed to seize
Caen. The Americans had yet to secure a lodgment far enough
inland to keep enemy artillery from hitting supply dumps and
unloading points they were building along the invasion beaches. Yet
more than 100,000 men had come ashore, the first of millions who
would follow.
By the last week in July, according to ULTRA intercepts of coded
German radio communications, the enemy in Normandy had
sustained casualties of more than 100,000 enlisted men and 2,360
officers killed and wounded.
The Allies, for their part, had brought four years of planning and
hard work to completion. Exhausted and battle-worn, they had at
last reached the Periers-St. Lo road. From there the land was dry and
the country relatively open. The final act of the war, the great push
through France into Germany itself, could now begin.
they had then climbed the bluffs overlooking the beach and
advanced inland, often at the cost of their own lives. In the same
way, although Maj. Gen. J. Lawton Collins' VII Corps captured the
port of Cherbourg on 29 June, the American advance bogged down
in the hedgerows. Bradley's First Army absorbed forty thousand
casualties while slowly advancing twenty miles to St. Lo.
Even so, enough went well for the campaign to succeed.
Roosevelt, Marshall, Eisenhower, Churchill, and Montgomery were
master communicators who bonded an unwieldy coalition into an
extraordinary fighting machine. The plan they and their staffs
devised failed to foresee every circumstance that would occur on the
battlefield, particularly the difficulties Bradley's forces would
encounter in the bocage, but it was still a masterpiece of innovation
that provided ample means for Allied commanders to prevail.
Cunning deceptions kept the Germans transfixed on the Pas de
Calais until long after the real invasion had occurred; Allied airmen
swept the skies clean of the enemy fighters and bombers that might
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SSG Dozier VFW Post 2894 Newsletter – Vol. III, Issue 3, June/July 2014
have imposed a heavy toll upon the landing force; and the effort to
build up the stocks of supplies and munitions necessary for an
effective attack succeeded beyond the most optimistic expectation.
In the end, notwithstanding, it was the heroism of the individual
infantryman, who rose day and night to the challenge despite almost
overwhelming fear and fatigue, that afforded the critical margin for
success.
General Eisenhower published the following message the day
before the landing: “Soldiers, Sailors and Airmen of the Allied
Expeditionary Force! You are about to embark upon a great crusade,
toward which we have striven these many months. The eyes of the
world are upon you. The hopes and prayers of liberty loving people
everywhere march with you. In company with our brave Allies and
brothers in arms on other fronts, you will bring about the destruction
of the German war machine, the elimination of Nazi tyranny over
the oppressed peoples of Europe, and security for ourselves in a free
world.
“Your task will not be an easy one. Your enemy is well trained,
well equipped and battle hardened, he will fight savagely.
“But this is the year 1944! Much has happened since the Nazi
triumphs of 1940-41. The United Nations have inflicted upon the
Germans great defeats, in open battle, man to man. Our air offensive
has seriously reduced their strength in the air and their capacity to
wage war on the ground. Our home fronts have given us an
overwhelming superiority in weapons and munitions of war, and
placed at our disposal great reserves of trained fighting men.
“The tide has turned! The free men of the world are marching
together to victory!
“I have full confidence in your courage, devotion to duty and skill
in battle. We will accept nothing less than full victory!
“Good Luck! And let us all beseech the blessings of Almighty
God upon this great and noble undertaking.”
Further information can be obtained at:

www.dday.org/70th-anniversary-events

www.army.mil/d-day/resources.html
OPERATION JOINT GUARDIAN KOSOVO
This June also marks another anniversary…the 15th year since US
forces entered the war-torn Serbian province of Kosovo.
By early 1999, more than eight-hundred thousand ethnic
Albanians had been driven out of Kosovo by Serbian forces under
Slobodan Milosevic, while as many as twelve thousand may have
been murdered in a wave of ethnic cleansing that horrified the
world. Working again in concert with European allies, US forces,
organized as Kosovo Forces (KFOR), entered Kosovo in June 1999
with the primary objective of bringing peace to that troubled land.
Page 5
The task, code named OPERATION JOINT GUARDIAN, proved
exceedingly difficult. Entrenched ethnic hatred between Albanians
and Serbians continued to fuel the conflict, and the general
devastation continued for many weeks.
Nominally a part of Serbia, Kosovo has essentially been a United
Nations protectorate since 1999. By the late twentieth century,
roughly 80 percent of the population self-identified as Muslims,
reflecting centuries of Turkish influence and the region’s place in
the former Ottoman Empire; 12 percent of the population identified
as Orthodox Christians, and 8 percent as Catholics.
The center of the province is the site of the climactic fourteenth
century Battle of Kosovo in which a largely Serbian army fought the
invading Ottoman Turks in 1389. In the centuries that followed, the
battle achieved near-legendary status, and the site became a
historical shrine for Serbians.
Albanians, who dominated demographically and politically in the
southern Balkans for almost five hundred years, usually served the
Ottomans, bitter foes of Serbia. Not until the 1870s, when Serbia
achieved its independence from the Ottoman Empire, did it become
politically feasible for Serbs and Albanians to express their hostility
to each other.
In 1989, Serbian leader Slobodan Milosevic paid an official state
visit to Kosovo to mark the anniversary of the famous fourteenthcentury battle there against the Turks. He promised to restore
Serbian control over the autonomous province.
Many ethnic Albanians hoped that their own independence would
be achieved through a resolution of the 1995 Dayton Accords,
which put an end to the fighting in Bosnia. They were bitterly
disappointed. In 1996, a small group of ethnic Albanians formed the
Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA).
Later that year, the KLA
launched its first attacks against the police forces in Kosovo.
Sporadic
fighting,
student
demonstrations,
and
strikes
continued, even as Serbian
security forces became more
aggressive in response.
After 1997, the Serb infusion
of military and paramilitary
forces into the region and its
expulsion of ethnic Albanians
were deliberate moves that had
been orchestrated. By August
1998, more than fifteen hundred
ethnic Albanians had been killed
in the escalating conflict, and
almost four hundred thousand
had been expelled from Kosovo.
Thousands
of
NATO
peacekeepers already were scattered throughout the former
Yugoslavia to prevent the spread of violence to the other
independent republics. A large US Army contingent—Task Force
Eagle—stationed in Bosnia- Herzegovina late in 1995 had achieved
sufficient success
to permit the
number
of
military
personnel to be
reduced
significantly by
1998. At the
time, however, it
seemed
likely
that US forces
would remain in
Bosnia
for
several
more
U.S. soldiers maintain crowd control as
years.
Albanians protest on January 9, 2000
SSG Dozier VFW Post 2894 Newsletter – Vol. III, Issue 3, June/July 2014
A much smaller Army task force was located at Camp Able
Sentry in what was officially called the Former Yugoslav Republic
of Macedonia (FYROM). The US camp was only a few miles north
of the Macedonian capital. While TF Eagle labored to prevent
further fighting among Bosnians and Serbs, the American forces in
Macedonia monitored the border that separated that country from
Yugoslavia.
Conditions in Kosovo deteriorated throughout the winter of
1998–99. KLA attacks became bolder and more frequent among
Serbian civilians. Kidnapping, torture, and assassination were
common occurrences. Tthe KLA taunted the Serb security forces to
respond more aggressively, and the Serbs responded as expected.
In fact, the Serbs expelled even more ethnic Albanians from
Kosovo. Property in predominantly Albanian neighborhoods was
systematically destroyed. Often Serbian paramilitary units entered
an Albanian village at night and randomly fired weapons into
homes, burned selected buildings, and vandalized property. Ethnic
Albanians working in their fields or walking on town streets would
be beaten or bullied by roving gangs; sometimes they simply
disappeared. Albanians refused to file formal complaints: doing so
often resulted in more intimidation—or death.
By 18 March, NATO had agreed to use air strikes to stop the
violence in Kosovo, and it now seemed certain that there would be a
military intervention to reverse the deteriorating conditions in the
province. On 20 March, observers withdrew from the region and
Serbian forces launched a major offensive throughout the province,
pushing more refugees across the borders, destroying property, and
killing or wounding thousands of civilians.
On 24 March 1999, therefore, a series of orchestrated air strikes
hit military, communications, and industrial targets throughout
Serbia and Kosovo. Code-named Operation Allied Force, nineteen
NATO countries employed Cruise missiles and a variety of aircraft
to pummel the Serbian military. About thirty-eight thousand sorties
were flown during the 77-day air campaign. Of these air strikes, US
military aircraft flew more than 60 percent.
But the Serbs doubted NATO’s determination to intervene in
Kosovo, especially after US political leaders explicitly denied that
American ground troops would invade the province. Serbian resolve
– especially as related to the location of their historic stand against
the Turks in Kosovo – as well as posturing, in the face of repeated
bombing raids forced NATO to reevaluate its campaign plan.
In the meantime, atrocities multiplied, and hundreds of thousands
more ethnic Albanians fled Kosovo in the weeks that followed.
Early in the air campaign, the US Air Force lost an F–117
“Stealth” aircraft to antiaircraft fire over Belgrade, but the pilot was
rescued. More troubling was the capture of three US soldiers along
the Macedonian-Kosovo border from the 1st Squadron, 4th Cavalry,
of the 1st Infantry Division at Camp Able Sentry. They were
detained for several days before being released.
As the air campaign continued without any clear end in sight, the
number of military targets diminished—in part because the
Yugoslav Army dispersed its mobile weapons and equipment and
placed the materiel in close proximity to civilian areas. Anticipating
this, NATO had initiated planning for the deployment of forty-eight
AH–64 attack helicopters from the 11th Aviation Brigade. These
aircraft could engage specific targets at close range and minimize
the possibility of collateral damage to civilians and nonmilitary
facilities.
However, the deployment of such a complex force was difficult
and took longer than expected due to various operational and
support changes.
Lt. Gen. John Hendrix, the commanding general of the US
Army’s V Corps in Germany, served as the commander of Task
Force Hawk, with Brig. Gen. Richard Cody and Col. Raymond
Odierno assisting as deputy commanders for aviation operations and
fire support and ground operations, respectively.
The lead elements for the task force arrived at Rinas Airfield,
outside Tirana, Albania, on 9 April. By 26 April, sufficient forces
had arrived at the site to declare the task force as mission ready and
operational. The final elements arrived on 7 May. Although the task
force was never directly employed in Operation Allied Force, two
AH–64 helicopters were lost in Albania, and the pilots died as a
result of accidents.
Critics slashed the Army for its apparent timidity or absence of
energy in committing assets to the air campaign against Serbia.
Political uncertainties, the rapidly assembled and deployed forces,
and the extremely austere base of operations in Albania exacerbated
the task force’s preparations for employment in the air campaign.
The Yugoslav Army was known to have an extensive array of air
U.S. Marines march with local Albanian children down the
main street of Zegra on June 28, 1999
defense weaponry available to combat low-level aircraft. The
commitment of TF Hawk would significantly alter Allied Force,
reflecting a more intensive war in Kosovo and an increase in
casualties on both sides of the conflict. This scenario was not a
welcomed one, either by the Army or NATO.
Operation Allied Force ended on 10 June after Slobodan
Milosevic agreed to permit NATO peacekeepers to enter Kosovo,
while agreeing to withdraw all Serbian security forces from the
province.
Selected personnel from TF Hawk provided most of the core
American assets of the initial entry of the US Army. Changing their
designation to TF Falcon on 9 June, elements of Hawk began
deploying to Camp Able Sentry in Macedonia for insertion into
Kosovo as part of Operation Joint Guardian. By 2 August, all TF
Hawk units had departed from Albania.
On 1 April 1999, the commander of European Command
(EUCOM), General Wesley Clark, directed USAREUR to freeze all
planned deployments for organizational training in anticipation of
requirements for moves into Kosovo. One operations officer
declared that Kosovo “has got to be one of the hardest places to get
to in the world.”
By 8 June, the USAREUR task organization for TF Falcon,
commanded by Brig. Gen. John Craddock, was settled: 1st
Battalion, 26th Infantry; 1st Battalion, 77th Armor; 9th Engineer
Battalion; 1st Battalion, 7th Field Artillery; 299th Forward Support
Battalion; 2d Brigade Reconnaissance Troop; and the headquarters
for the 2d Brigade and selected support elements of the 1 st Infantry
Division.
To ensure stability in Kosovo and prevent further bloodshed, the
US was able to commit most of the elements from TF Hawk, the
26th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), and an advanced
contingent from the 1st Infantry Division that was flown in from
Germany to Macedonia and then convoyed into Kosovo on 12 June.
NATO divided Kosovo into five multinational brigade sectors:
MNB-North (France), MNB-Central (United Kingdom), MNB-West
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SSG Dozier VFW Post 2894 Newsletter – Vol. III, Issue 3, June/July 2014
(Italy), MNB-South (Germany), and MNB-East (United States).
Within the US sector of KFOR, military personnel from Greece
occupied two municipal areas, a combined Polish-Ukrainian unit
occupied another municipal area, and a Russian parachute battalion
occupied the northern municipal district.
Operation Joint Guardian had five, basic components:
 Establish a secure presence in Kosovo in accordance with UN
Security Council Resolution 1244.
 Verify and enforce the terms of the Military Technical
Agreement.
 Establish a safe and secure environment for refugees and
displaced persons.
 Establish a secure environment to permit international
organizations to operate, interim administrations to function, and
humanitarian aid to be delivered.
 Help achieve a self-sustaining, secure environment to transfer
public responsibilities to civil authority.
Chaos dominated the environment as Operation Joint Guardian
began in earnest. The solitary two-lane road from the Macedonian
capital to Kosovo was clogged with refugees and military vehicles.
In Germany, units and their equipment were intermingled on aircraft
to maximize available space, which was efficient to get units en
route to Kosovo, but added to confusion at the arrival airfield. In
spite of these difficulties, within forty-eight hours of the end of the
air campaign, there were about two hundred fifty “trigger-pullers” in
MNB-East, occupying two campsites (soon to become Camps
Bondsteel and Monteith), trying to maintain the peace among more
than one hundred and fifty thousand civilians— a number that was
growing daily as ethnic Albanian refugees returned home.
No one in TF Falcon anticipated the level of violence and
lawlessness, sometimes within minutes, following the departure of
the Serbian security forces and preceding the arrival of NATO
forces. The task force entered the province prepared to protect
ethnic Albanians only to discover that the tables had turned: Ethnic
Serbs now required the protection. Thousands of Serbs fled Kosovo
within days of the end of Operation allied force. One municipality
went from a population of ten thousand Serbs to fewer than twenty.
Murder, assault, kidnapping, extortion, burglary, and arson were
reported daily throughout the province. One TF Falcon staff officer
summarized the early days of Operation Joint Guardian well: “I
think everybody was surprised at the amount of retribution that was
occurring. . . . We handled it the best we could. . . .Short of having a
soldier in front of every Serb house, there was no way we were
going to stop it.”
Many departing Serbs destroyed their own homes and any
past grievances, initiated a wave of destruction that equaled in
method if not in volume what they had experienced earlier during
the Serbian ethnic cleansing. Anything Serbian was destroyed or
vandalized—even abandoned houses and churches. Each day in
June, American soldiers confronted new expressions of hatred. A
newborn infant was found abandoned outside the city of Vitina.
Reputedly, the mother had been raped by a Serb, and she refused to
care for the child. US soldiers placed the baby with an Albanian
health clinic.
By 10 July, the bulk of the US Army contingent from Europe was
in-country. This presence permitted the departure of the 26th MEU.
To ensure a seamless transfer of authority, the relief occurred during
the early morning darkness. From this point on, the US KFOR
mission in MNB-East was largely an Army operation.
On 15 July, during market day in Vitina, a bomb exploded
outside a former Serbian store, injuring more than thirty civilians—
all ethnic Serbs.
Throughout the first month of the peace enforcement operation in
the US sector, the level of violence did not change significantly. The
daily routine entailed the same jobs: fight fires, disperse crowds, and
quell violence. Small caches of weapons and ammunition usually
were found every day. Wounded Serbs were treated regularly by
Army medics or evacuated to medical facilities. The episodes
seemed constant and blended into an endless stream of violence.
In mid-July, three US soldiers died in two separate incidents. The
first combat death, Spc. Benjamin McGill, occurred as he and two
fellow soldiers were pursuing armed Albanians who had recently
fired at the Americans. McGill adjusted his vehicle antenna
moments before it struck a power line, killing him instantly. Two
more soldiers died hours later when their armored vehicle skidded
off the road and overturned. These men, too, were responding to
reports of gunfire at a nearby village.
Even if it seemed that the Army had made little headway,
significant changes actually had occurred and conditions in Kosovo
improved slowly. The most obvious element of success was the
absence of massive ethnic cleansing of Kosovo-Albanians.
Unfortunately, the reverse was happening to Kosovo-Serbs, albeit
on a much smaller scale and level of intensity. Progress in
rebuilding the province, restoring its economy, and repairing its
infrastructure was still months away, but the wholesale destruction
of homes and businesses was being stopped. Comparing the first
three weeks of August with the last week of the month, the number
of reported assaults dropped almost in half. When contrasted with
the hundreds of murders, assaults, and kidnappings that preceded
the arrival of KFOR three months earlier, this reduction in violence
was no mean achievement.
Army engineers invested thousands of hours in repairing or
rebuilding public schools in response to the damage or destruction
of almost five hundred educational facilities throughout the province
between 1996 and 1999. Individual Army units took it upon
themselves to solicit their home stations, and, in less than twelve
months, received hundreds of pounds of school supplies, including
writing instruments, paper, and notebooks, which they distributed to
schoolchildren in MNB-East.
Every effort was made to make school buildings habitable and
operational by mid-September. Most teachers worked without
salaries until December; there were few textbooks and no school
supplies, except for the small contributions coming from American
soldiers. Schoolchildren and teachers often were the Army
personnel’s greatest supporters, and they frequently greeted the
irregular visits as festive occasions.
Children were back in school, receiving a rudimentary education,
and were no longer subject to the violence that had terrified them
months earlier. Looking back on the first few weeks of that new
school year, one US KFOR officer proudly proclaimed, “There’s
hope.”
A USAF F-15E taking off from Aviano Air Base
property that they could not carry out of Kosovo. Animals that could
not be taken were slaughtered. One staff officer later reported: “The
horizon glowed with burning houses.” Abandoned Serbian military
installations were destroyed, vandalized, or mined. Even grave sites
were booby-trapped. The absence of order and public services was
total. In the first few hours of the transition, fleeing Serbian civilians
and security forces were responsible for most of the property
destruction in Kosovo, but the source of destruction soon changed.
Ethnic Albanians, consumed with hatred and resolved to avenge
Page 7
SSG Dozier VFW Post 2894 Newsletter – Vol. III, Issue 3, June/July 2014
On the eve of one battalion’s redeployment back to Germany in
“We gave everything we had to fulfilling our tasks and could
December and following a spate of grenade attacks in which there
remember hundreds of small successes. We saved many lives,
were “no witnesses,” the unit historian
prevented the killing of many others, delivered
summarized the sentiments of his fellow
life saving aid to tens of thousands of people,
soldiers, who were becoming “disgusted
and did our best to get Serbs and Albanians,
with the complete lack of a civilized nature
Catholics and Gypsies to work together for a
or sense of morality among the people.”
brighter future in Kosovo. And for the first time
Throughout the remainder of 1999 and
in the lives of Kosovars, they experienced a
continuing into 2000, no Army report or
conquering Army that did not loot, and rape
briefing, nor personal reminiscence by
and kill. It did not seem arrogant for me to
individual commanders and staff officers,
think about the line in the biblical Beatitudes:
could avoid citing episodes of murder,
‘Blessed are the peacemakers.’”
arson, or vandalism. Yet two characteristics
The Kosovo Campaign Medal (KCM) was
soon became apparent nonetheless.
established by President Bill Clinton on May 3,
First, the reported acts of violence
2000. The medal recognizes military service
became less frequent and affected fewer
performed in Kosovo from March 24, 1999
people. Murders and assaults were reported
through December 31, 2013. US Service
Kosovo Campaign Medal (US) on left, UN
on a weekly basis and no longer were daily
members may also be eligible to wear the UN
Kosovo Service Medal on right
events that dominated the early summer of
Kosovo Service medal when authorized.
1999. Second, crowds could gather in municipal areas in 2000
(Extracted from “Operation Joint Guardian”, by R. Cody Phillips
without always starting a riot, and phrases such as “celebrated
(Center of Military History Publication 70–109–1))
peacefully” and “without violence” began to appear in various
reports.
 SAFETY CORNER 
TF Falcon was officially created on 5 February 1999. In the years
that followed, a wide assortment of Army organizations from both
JUNE IS NATIONAL SAFETY MONTH
the active force and reserve components participated in the peace
enforcement mission in Kosovo. Most of the units that made up TF
Stop slips, trips and falls
Falcon served six-month tours and came from these divisions: 1st
We all know to be careful to avoid slips, trips and falls on
Infantry, 1st Armored, 101st Airborne, 82d Airborne, 10th
ladders or stairs, but more often than not, this type of injury is
Mountain, 3d Infantry, 28th Infantry (Pennsylvania National
caused by simply walking!
Guard), 38th Infantry (Indiana National Guard), 40th Infantry
This is because walking is something we all do all of the time.
(California National Guard), 36th Infantry (Texas National Guard),
And doing the same thing over and over again often leads to
and 29th Infantry (Virginia National Guard).
complacency. So how can we avoid becoming complacent? The best
One of the great advantages that the Kosovo mission possessed
way is to trigger on the state so that you don’t make a critical error.
was the opportunity it gave many soldiers to learn how to operate in
And of course remember to keep your eyes and mind
a demanding peace-enforcement environment. The American force
on task – this is crucial for avoiding problems with
had come to Kosovo to stop the horrible violence afflicting the
balance/traction/grip that can lead to falls.
province’s Albanians. In short order, however, those victims
Here are some tips for how to handle common
became the victimizers.
items or locations that can lead to slips, trips and
There was no denying that Operation Joint Guardian achieved
falls:
major, measurable successes. Although some eight hundred
Ladders
thousand ethnic Albanians had fled Kosovo in the 1990s, for
 Use a ladder instead of standing on a chair, table or box.
example, almost as many returned after NATO forces entered the
 Never stand or step on the top platform of any ladder.
province to enforce peace. Such a massive return of people to their
Parking Lots
homes was perhaps the most satisfying measure of operational
 Watch for uneven surfaces and walk slowly, with short strides.
success and a direct reflection of the situation on the ground: The
 Look for curbs and potholes when walking between motor
level of violence had diminished, a measure of law and order had
vehicles.
been reestablished, schools and stores were reopened, free elections
 Assume ice is on the ground in near-freezing temperatures
became possible, public services came back on line, and most of
Cords
Kosovo’s civilians once more had freedom of movement.
 Do not extend electrical cords across a walking path, and tie up
In 2000, TF Falcon’s commander, Brig. Gen. Keith Huber,
loose cords.
assessed the situation in Kosovo this way:
 Tape down or otherwise secure cords that are temporarily
“So are we safe and secure? For the moment. Is it tense? Yes.
located in high-traffic areas.
Are these people capable of momentary violence? Yes. Is there
Stairs
hatred here? Yes. But it’s like any other society in the world. And at
 Keep one hand on the handrail.
least the people of Kosovo are moving forward on a democratic
 Limit your carrying load.
path, and at least they are trying, some of them willingly, some of
 Keep your vision unobstructed.
them grudgingly. But they are being assisted along this path of
Work areas
democracy, which says that you accept diversity, you tolerate
 Wear appropriate slip-resistant shoes.
differences, and you try to provide a better life for your children
 Walk slowly around corners, turns and other areas where
than you had.”
visibility is limited.
Peace and a better future for Kosovo seemed like fanciful
illusions as TF Falcon entered that troubled land in June 1999. The
 Keep workspaces and walkways clear and well-lit.
events of Operation Joint Guardian were extraordinarily frustrating
Wet floors
and difficult but, as Lt. Col. Timothy Reese, commander of TF 1 Immediately clean up spills, and warn others of wet surfaces.
77th Armor, wrote after boarding his plane for home late in 1999,
 Use caution while walking in areas where wet floors are likely,
there were compensations and hope:
such as entrances or restrooms.
Page 8
SSG Dozier VFW Post 2894 Newsletter – Vol. III, Issue 3, June/July 2014
 SAFETY CORNER 
JULY IS NATIONAL UV MONTH
YOU CAN HELP!
If you are looking to get involved and help the Post
improve its work for and with veterans, think about
joining one of the recently established committees.
Contact one of the members of the committees you’re
interested in and let them know you’d like to help:
 Budget Committee: Chair – Carl Dozier. Looking for
additional volunteers.
 Awards Committee: Angela Taylor, Gary Dunbar,
Mark Rios, and Chris Mulholland
 Membership Committee: John Guill, Mark Rios,
Gary Dunbar, and Chris Mulholland
 Building Committee: Carl Dozier and Gary Dunbar
An individual’s risk of skin cancer is related to lifetime exposure
to ultraviolet (UV) rays from the sun and artificial sources (tanning
booths/beds and sunlamps). The skin is the body's largest organ. It
protects against cold, heat, sunlight, injury, and infection. Yet, some
of us don't consider the necessity of protecting the skin from
overexposure to the sun.
Skin cancer is the most common
type of cancer in the United States,
developing in approximately one
million Americans each year.
Nonmelanoma skin cancers (basal cell
cancer and squamous cell cancer) are
much more common than melanoma;
however, melanoma is the most serious
type of skin cancer. Exposure to
ultraviolet (UV) rays (both A and B
rays) appears to be the most important
environmental risk factor for the
development of skin cancer. The most effective way to lower the
risk of skin cancer is to engage in sun-safety practices, such as
wearing sunscreen and protective clothing, seeking shade, and
avoiding artificial sources of UV rays (tanning booths and
sunlamps).
Respondents to the 2005 Health Information National Trends
Survey (HINTS 2005) were asked a series of questions about the
frequency with which they engage in sun-safety practices. Only a
minority of Americans reported “always or often” engaging in
protective behavior when outside for an hour or more on a warm,
sunny day. Although 43.4% of respondents reported “always or
often” seeking shade, half said they “rarely or never” used
sunscreen. Other protective strategies were also used more
commonly than sunscreen: 45.4% “always or often” wore long pants
and 34.7% “always or often” wore a hat. Only 16.1% “always or
often” wore a long-sleeved shirt. Data from the National Health
Interview Survey (NHIS) confirm relatively low prevalence of sunsafety behaviors, with estimates of use of sunscreen, protective
clothing, or seeking shade hovering around 30% since the early
1990s. In HINTS 2005, 91.7% of American adults reported that they
had not used indoor tanning devices during the previous 12 months.
Just visit www.FOH.hhs.gov/UVIQ to find out more—and take
our interactive quiz to find out how much you know about
protecting yourself from the sun’s UV rays.
The risk for skin cancers is highest for fair-skinned populations,
but skin cancer can develop in all individuals, regardless of skin
pigmentation.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
recommends the following sun-safety practices:
 Seek shade, especially during midday hours (10:00 a.m. – 4:00
p.m.), when UV rays are strongest and can do the most damage.
 Cover up with protective clothing, such as long-sleeved shirts
and long pants of tightly woven fabrics.
 Wear a hat with a wide brim to shade the face, head, ears, and
neck.
 Wear sunglasses that wrap around the head and that are designed
to block as close to 100% of both UV-A and UV-B rays as
possible.
 Use sunscreen that protects against UV-A and UV-B rays and
has a sun protective factor (SPF) of at least 15. Apply liberally
and often while exposed to the sun.
MEMBERSHIP
Please remember to always look for new members to
recruit for Post 2894. The three prerequisites for VFW
membership include: (1) US Citizenship, (2)
Honorable service in the US Armed Services, and (3)
Service entitling the award of a recognized campaign
medal or as set forth in the VFW Congressional
Charter and By-Laws.
Prospective members can sign up on-line at
https://www.vfw.org/oms/NewMember.aspx.
FOR MILITARY AND VETERAN FAMILIES IN
NEED, THE NATIONAL HOME HELPLINE IS
JUST A TOLL-FREE CALL AWAY
The National Home Helpline is the gateway to help
for military and veterans’ families, providing
connections with supportive services and resources in
communities all across the nation as well as referrals to
our on-campus programs.
And our war heroes can take comfort in knowing
that their call will be answered by a caring professional
who understands the unique challenges faced by
today’s military and veterans’ families.
The toll-free Helpline is answered Monday through
Friday between 8:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time.
1-800-313-4200, [email protected]
QUARTERMASTER DESK
Post 2894 Annual Dues are
$35.50.
Annual dues can be paid via mail
(see our new address on front of
newsletter) or to the Quartermaster
at one of our meetings.
LIFETIME MEMBERSHIP
Page 9
SSG Dozier VFW Post 2894 Newsletter – Vol. III, Issue 3, June/July 2014
1944 First B-29 raid over Tokyo; one lost to engine failure
You can become a VFW Life Member by paying a
one-time fee as listed in the table below, or making an
initial $35 payment and then paying the remainder over
an 11-month installment plan. You will be issued an
annual membership card and can elect, upon receipt of
the first monthly invoice, to pay via check, credit card
or ACH Debit. The applicable Life Membership fee is
determined from the schedule using the applicant’s age
on Dec. 31 of the installment plan year in which the
application is submitted, regardless of actual date of
birth. A permanent Life Membership card will be
issued upon completion of this agreement.
1947 SecState George C Marshall outlines the "Marshall Plan"
1967 Six Day War begins between Israel & its Arab neighbors
6
1898 Marines land at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba
1898 Action at Santiago, Cuba: US ships exchange fire with
Spanish batteries
1918 US Marines secure Belleau Wood
1944 D-Day - www.strategypage.com/cic/docs/cic174b.asp#three
1944 Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., earns Medal of Honor on Utah
Beach
1945 Okinawa: Marines capture Naha airfield
7
1775 The "United Colonies" change their name to the "United
States"
1912 US Army Air Service tests airplane-mounted machine gun
One-Time Payment
Installment Payment
Age
18-30
$ 425
$ 38.64
31-40
$ 410
$ 37.27
41-50
$ 375
$ 34.09
51-60
$ 335
$ 30.45
61-70
$ 290
$ 26.36
71-80
$ 225
$ 20.45
81 & over
$ 170
$ 15.45
http://www.vfw.org/Join/Dues-Structure
Life Memberships can be paid online at www.vfw.org, via
mail, or in-person at the meetings.
1917 Liverpool: first American troops reach Europe
1942 Aleutians Campaign: Japanese troops land on Attu.
1942 Midway Campaign: the 'Yorktown' (CV-5) sunk
8
1965 US troops ordered to fight offensively in Vietnam
1967 Israeli air and naval forces attack USS 'Liberty' (AGTR-5), 34
Americans die
9
1863 Battle of Brandy Station; largest cavalry fight of the Civil
War
1944 Normandy: U.S. VII & V Corps link up to form continuous
beachhead
1945 Luzon: Sixth Army manages to isolate Japanese forces.
1945 Premier Kantaro Suzuki declares Japan will never surrender
JUNE MILITARY HISTORY
1
1959 The first ballistic missile sub is launched, USS 'George
Washington' (SSBN-598)
10
1774 British close Port of Boston in punishment for "Tea Party"
1862 Battle of Seven Pines: Confederate Gen. Joe Johnston is
wounded, and relinquishes command to Robert E. Lee
1801 Tripoli declares war on the US, for refusing to pay
protection, initiating the First Barbary War (1801-1805)
1864 Battle of Cold Harbor, Day 1
12
1866 Fenians attack Fort Erie, Ontario, from US soil
13
1877 US troops authorized to pursue bandits & Indians into
Mexico
1939 Director of Naval Research Laboratory, proposes research in
atomic energy for use in submarines
14
1777 John Paul Jones takes command of USS 'Ranger'
1942 The bazooka goes into production at Bridgeport, Ct
Feast of St. Elmo, Patron of Sailors
1949 State of Vietnam is formed within 'French Union' under
Emperor Bao Dai
1774 Parliament passes Quartering Act, billeting troops in private
homes
1982 Falklands: Argentines surrender to Britain; 74-day war ends
1784 Congress disbands last elements of Continental Army, save
for 100 troops guarding supplies at West Point and Ft. Pitt
1865 Confederate Trans-Mississippi Department surrenders to
Union
1985 Lebanese Shiite gunmen hijack TWA 847 after takeoff from
Athens
15
1776 Americans burn and abandon Montreal
1914 Glenn Curtiss flies his 'Langley Aerodrome'
1864 Battle of Petersburg: Grant's first assault
1784 Congress creates US Army, forming 1st American Regt (now
3rd Infantry) on cadre of 100 troops left over from
Continental Army
1864 Robert E Lee's home, Arlington, becomes military cemetery
1916 Congress establishes ROTC
1944 US Marines land on Saipan
1959 First US Air Force Academy graduation
1955 First nationwide civil defense drill - "Duck and Cover!"
1877 Henry O Flipper becomes first black cadet to graduate from
West Point
1965 First American "space walk", Maj. Edward White, Gemini 4
1991 Mt Pinatubo in Philippines erupts, closes Clark Air Force Base
1789 Constitution of the United States goes into effect
16
1918 US & French halt Germans at Chateau-Thierry
1858 Lincoln says "A house divided against itself cannot stand"
1864 Siege of Petersburg & Richmond begins
1942 Battle of Midway: Japanese lose four CVs, USS Yorktown
badly damaged
5
1775 US Army is formed from New England forces before Boston
1777 Congress replaces "Grand Union Flag" with "Stars & Stripes"
1944 Allied forces begin covering much of Britain with smoke
screens, as troops crowd assembly areas for D-Day
4
1900 Boxer Rebellion begins in China
1912 First successful parachute jump from an airplane, Capt
Albert Berry, Jefferson, Ms
1914 SecNav Josephus Daniels' G.O. 99 bars alcohol in the fleet
3
1987 Ronald Reagan says, "Mr. Gorbachov, tear down this wall."
1999 NATO peacekeeping forces begin operating in Kosovo,
Yugoslavia
1871 US Sailors & Marines land in Korea, to protect U.S. citizens
2
1776 Congress appoints a committee to write a Declaration of
Independence
17
1745 American colonials capture Louisburg, Cape Breton I, from
French
1944 Allied forces liberate Rome
1775 Battle of Bunker Hill
1917 US begins draft registration: 10 million eventually sign up
1777 19 year old Marquis de La Fayette (Marie-Joseph Paul Yves
Roch Gilbert du Motier) & several other French volunteers
Page 10
SSG Dozier VFW Post 2894 Newsletter – Vol. III, Issue 3, June/July 2014
for American Revolution land at Charleston
1867 Dominion of Canada is formed
1898 Navy Hospital Corps (“Corpsmen”) is established
1870 James W Smith becomes first black man to enter West Point
1916 Pershing leads Punitive Expedition into Mexico in
unsuccessful attempt to kill Pancho Villa
1918 Marines secure Belleau Wood
1950 First US ground troops arrive in Korea
1945 Final Japanese defensive line on Okinawa breached
2
1965 Vietnam: First B-52 raid, 50 km north of Saigon
18
1777 Vermont abolishes slavery, first "state" to do so
1778 British evacuate Philadelphia
1863 Battle of Gettysburg, Day 2: A draw
1812 US declares war against Britain
1903 US leases Guantanamo Bay from Cuba for $2,000 a year
1878 Congress creates US Life Saving Service
19
1926 Congress authorizes Distinguished Flying Cross
1778 Washington's troops leave Valley Forge
1942 JCS authorize "Operation Watchtower," seizure of
Guadalcanal
1878 Congress passes Posse Comitatus Act, to prevent military
from enforcing civil rights laws
1944 "Marianas Turkey Shoot" - Battle of Philippine Sea: in 2 days
Japanese lose 3 CVs, 426 a/c, US c. 70 a/c.
20
1957 'Seawolf '(SSN 575) completed, first sub with liquid metal
cooled reactor
1967 Muhammad Ali is convicted of refusing induction into Army
3
1754 Col. George Washington (22) surrenders Ft. Necessity to
French
1675 Wampanoag Indians raid Swansea, Mass., initiating "King
Philip's War" (1675-1676)
1775 Gem. George Washington (43) assumes command of Patriot
forces investing Boston
1782 Congress adopts Great Seal of the United States
1863 Battle Gettysburg, Day 3: "Pickett’s Charge" is shattered
1813 War of 1812: U.S. gunboats engage three British ships at
Hampton Roads, Va
1950 First US-North Korean clash: TF Smith is overrun
1988 USS 'Vincennes' (CG-49) accidentally shoots down Iranian
airliner, 290 die
1867 US buys Alaska from Russia for $7.2 million
1941 U.S. Army Air Corps is reorganized as Army Air Forces
4
1947 Cold War: Congress charters CIA
21
1948 Berlin Airlift begins
22
1938 Joe "the Brown Bomber" Louis KOs Max "Hitler's
Heavyweight" Schmeling at 2:04 into their rematch, in
Yankee Stadium
1801 1st Presidential Review of Marine Band and Marines, at White
House.
1802 US Military Academy opens at West Point
1818 Congress rules that flag shall have 13 stripes, and 1 star for
each state
1942 US introduces "V-Mail" for military personnel
1944 FDR signs "Servicemen's Readjustment Act", betterknown as
"the GI Bill of Rights" -http://www.strategypage.com/cic/docs/cic310b.asp#two
1832 Samuel Francis Smith's "America" is sung in public for first
time
1863 Vicksburg surrenders to U.S. Grant
1945 Okinawa secured: 110,000 Japanese troops, 100,000
civilians, 17,520 US troops died
23
1938 Congress establishes U.S. Maritime Service
25
1864 Petersburg: Union troops begin tunnel under Confederate
lines
1942 First American bombing mission over Nazi-occupied Europe
1942 Te American Volunteer Group ("Flying Tigers") becomes 14th
AF
1950 Carriers USS 'Valley Forge' (CV-45) & HMS 'Triumph' make
first UN air strikes of Korean War
1876 Battle of Little Big Horn: Crazy Horse does in Custer
1918 4th Marine Brigade secured Belleau Wood, Chateau-Thierry,
France
5
1861 Skirmish at Newport News: US retakes Gosport Naval Base
1950 North Korea invades South Korea. claiming "self-defense"
1863 Battle of Gettysburg, Day 5: Lee retreats
1996 Dhahran, Saudi Arabia: Islamists bomb Khobar Towers, 19
Americans die, c. 500 Saudis & Americans injured
6
1911 First naval air station established, Annapolis, MD.
1976 Women are admitted to US Naval Academy for first time
1963 Berlin: Kennedy's "Ich bin ein Berliner" is wildly applauded
7
1927 USMC adopts "Sgt Jiggs," an English bulldog, as its mascot
1948 Berlin Airlift begins
1941 Iceland: US Marines relieve British forces so they can fight
elsewhere
1965 President Johnson orders US ground forces to Vietnam
1944 Saipan: Japanese troops make final "banzai" charge
1863 Lee orders his forces to concentrate near Gettysburg
1944 US B-29s from China attack Japan.
1945 Operation Olympic: Truman sets invasion of Japan for Nov
1st
1966 Marines initiate "Operation Hasting" - to clear NVA from DMZ
8
1863 Battle of Gettysburg, Day1: Lee wins, but Union troops fall
back on strong position
1853 Commodore Perry sails frigate Susquehanna into Tokyo Bay
1865 C.E. Barnes receives US patent for machine gun
JULY MILITARY HISTORY
1
1846 Commo John D. Sloat takes Monterey, claims California for
US
1920 USN aircraft tests "radio compass", Norfolk, Va
1950 US sends 35 military advisers to South Vietnam
29
1777 Burgoyne's British & Hessians capture Fort Ticonderoga
1785 Congress introduces the dollar
1917 First American combat troops arrive in France
1924 Marines leave Dominican Republic after 8 years of
occupation
28
1814 Battle of Chippewa: "Those are regulars, by God!"
1814 US Sloop-of-War 'Peacock' captures four British ships
1942 Eisenhower takes command of US forces in Europe
27
1776 Independence Day: Two days after voting for independence,
Continental Congress adopts "Declaration of Independence"
1777 John Paul Jones hoists Stars and Stripes on Ranger,
Portsmouth, NH
1963 Cold War: Washington-Moscow "hot line" established
26
1776 Continental Congress declares Thirteen Colonies independent
1945 TF38 arrives off Japan with 20 carriers; to stay until end of
war
1950 Douglas MacArthur named CinC UN forces in Korea
9
1864 Battle of Petersburg (to July 31)
1755 Braddock's Defeat: Battle of the Monangahela – Daniel Boone
is a wagon driver
1776 Declaration of Independence read to Washington's troops in
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SSG Dozier VFW Post 2894 Newsletter – Vol. III, Issue 3, June/July 2014
NY, whereupon citizens pull down George III's statue to make
musket balls
1918 Congress establishes Distinguished Service Cross
1944 US forces land on Japanese-held Tinian from nearby Saipan
24
1948 Soviets initiate blockade of Berlin
1969 Muhammad Ali is convicted of refusing induction in US Army
1944 US secures Saipan: 3,200 US, 27,000 Japanese KIA, & many
civilian suicides
10
23
25
1866 U.S. Grant is named first full general in US Army
1821 US takes possession of Florida from Spain
1947 US Army, Navy, & Air Force are subordinated to new Dept of
Defense
1943 Operation Husky: US & Commonwealth forces invade Sicily
1953 American troops abandon Pork Chop Hill, Korea
11
1866 David G. Farragut is appointed first Admiral in US Navy
1786 US pays Morocco $10,000 to "protect" merchant ships from
piracy
26
1948 Truman initiates integration of Armed Forces
27
1909 Orville Wright demonstrates plane for Army, flying 72 minutes
1953 North Korea & UN sign armistice
1798 Congress reactivates USMC, disbanded in 1784
1954 Armistice divides Vietnam in two
1812 US invades Canada near Detroit
1995 Korean War Veterans Memorial dedicated in Washington
1919 US Navy Pay Corps becomes Supply Corps
1943 USN surface ships break German-Italian tank attack at Gela,
Sicily
1955 USAF Academy opens with 300 cadets at Lowry AFB, Colo.
28
1898 Skirmish at Ponce, Puerto Rico, which shortly surrenders to
US
28
1914 Austria-Hungary attacks Serbia, igniting WW I
1931 Congress makes "The Star-Spangled Banner" national anthem
12
1942 U-Boat lands four German saboteurs on Long Island, who are
soon captured
14
1813 Lt John M. Gamble, becomes only US Marine to command a
ship, prize 'Greenwich'
1945 Kamikaze sink their last ship, USS 'Callaghan' (DD-792), off
Okinawa.
1825 Lafayette reviews 2nd Bn, 11th NY Arty (7th NY), which
adopts name "The National Guard"
1945 Army B-25 crashes into 79th floor of Empire State Bldg, 14
die
1932 Douglas MacArthur routs Bonus Army against orders
1900 "China Relief Expedition" captures Tientsin from Boxers
29
1959 First nuclear powered cruiser commissioned, USS 'Long
Beach' (CGN 9)
30
1949 Berlin Airlift ends, as Soviets end blockade
1967 Fire aboard USS 'Forrestal' (CV-59), Gulf of Tonkin, 134 die
1972 Vietnam: Jane Fonda makes first of 10 broadcasts on Radio
Hanoi.
1864 Petersburg Campaign: Battle of the Crater
1909 US Army accepts delivery of first military airplane
15
1958 Marines land in Lebanon, to support government
1942 WAVES (Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service)
created
16
1861 Bull Run Campaign: Gen McDowell advances from Washington
toward Fairfax Courthouse
1945 USS 'Indianapolis' (CA-35) torpedoed & sunk; nearly 900 die
over next 4 days
17
1927 USMC pilots conduct first combat dive bombing, Ocotal,
Nicaragua.
18
1966 US airplanes bomb demilitarized zone in Vietnam
1863 54th Mass. leads gallant attempt to storm Fort Wagner, near
Charleston
31
1914 US Army Air Service is formed within Signal Corps
1812 1st Battle of Sackett's Harbor: Americans beat off British
attack across Lake Erie
FROM THE EDITOR
1886 'Atlanta' commissioned, first USN steel cruiser
1897 Lt Robert E. Peary departs on year-long Arctic Expedition
20
1881 Sioux leader Sitting Bull surrenders to federal troops
1942 Congress creates Legion of Merit
1942 First WAACs begin basic training
1944 Marines land on Guam.
1948 US reinstitutes draft, for Cold War
21
1823 Lt David G. Farragut leads raid to destroy pirate base in Cuba
1861 First Battle of Bull Run/Manassas: Confederate Victory
1930 Veterans' Administration established
1969 Neil Armstrong's "small step" on moon - 2:56:15 AM GMT
22
1813 British attack Plattsburgh, NY
1925 Last Allied occupation forces leave the Rhineland
1944 US troops capture St. Lo, Normandy
19
1777 Marquis de Lafayette becomes major-general in Continental
Army
1802 US Frigate 'Constellation' defeats 9 corsair gunboats off
Tripoli
1905 Remains of John Paul Jones removed from Paris for
transportation to Annapolis
1943 Patton captures Palermo
If you are interested in submitting articles, photos,
updates on events, for inclusion in the newsletter,
please send them to me at:
505 Piping Rock Drive, Chesapeake, VA 23322
757-482-4981 or [email protected]
If you know of a business or anyone who would
like to help sponsor Post 2894, please let them know
that their help will be recognized in the newsletter.
The primary means for disseminating the newsletter
will be via e-mail.
Semper fidelis,
- Chris Mulholland
YOUR AD
COULD BE
HERE!!!
1987 USN begins escorting re-flagged Kuwaiti tankers in Persian
Gulf
Page 12
SSG Dozier VFW Post 2894 Newsletter – Vol. III, Issue 3, June/July 2014
POST 2894 CALENDAR
JUNE
5-8
6
11
14
15
21
JULY
State Convention, Williamsburg
70th Anniversary of D-Day Landing
Post Meeting, 1900 (7 pm)
Flag Day
Father’s Day
First Day of Summer
4
9
19-23
31
Independence Day
Post Meeting, 1900 (7 pm)
VFW National Convention, St. Louis
Quarterly Audit due
OR Your Ad
could be
HERE!!!
Page 13
SSG Dozier VFW Post 2894 Newsletter – Vol. III, Issue 3, June/July 2014
VFW SSG Dozier Post 2894
Chesapeake, VA 23322
Fold here
Page 14